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Guild of St. Stephen
The Archconfraternity of St Stephen or Guild of St Stephen is the international organisation of altar servers of the Catholic Church, recognised by the Holy See.
The Guild of St Stephen was founded in 1904 by Fr Hamilton McDonald when he formed a society of altar servers at the Convent of the Sacred Heart (now Sacred Heart High School) in Hammersmith, London with the aim of improving standards of serving. The idea spread quickly and the idea was adopted at Westminster Cathedral by the then Archbishop of Westminster, Cardinal Francis Bourne. In 1905, Pope Pius X, gave his approbation to the canonical establishment of the Guild at Westminster Cathedral.
In 1906, the Sacred Congregation of Rites made the guild an Archconfraternity, enabling all parish branches to be linked with it. In 1934, the Guild spread, leading to Pope Pius XI's enabling of all Guilds throughout the British Commonwealth to be affiliated with the Archconfraternity at Westminster.
The Guild is primarily under the patronage of the Blessed Virgin Mary, as well as that of St Stephen (the Protomartyr, after whom the Guild was named), St. Thomas More, and St. Pius X.
The purpose of the Guild of St. Stephen is threefold:
Upon enrollment into the Guild, the server is presented with the Guild Medal, which is made of bronze and is worn around the neck, hanging from a red cord representing the blood of the martyrs. It is not permissible to change the colour of the cord as this is symbolic of the martyr patrons of the Guild.
The medal's meaning is twofold:
The letters "XP" are in the centre of the medal, being the first two letters of the name "Christ" in Greek.
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Guild of St. Stephen
The Archconfraternity of St Stephen or Guild of St Stephen is the international organisation of altar servers of the Catholic Church, recognised by the Holy See.
The Guild of St Stephen was founded in 1904 by Fr Hamilton McDonald when he formed a society of altar servers at the Convent of the Sacred Heart (now Sacred Heart High School) in Hammersmith, London with the aim of improving standards of serving. The idea spread quickly and the idea was adopted at Westminster Cathedral by the then Archbishop of Westminster, Cardinal Francis Bourne. In 1905, Pope Pius X, gave his approbation to the canonical establishment of the Guild at Westminster Cathedral.
In 1906, the Sacred Congregation of Rites made the guild an Archconfraternity, enabling all parish branches to be linked with it. In 1934, the Guild spread, leading to Pope Pius XI's enabling of all Guilds throughout the British Commonwealth to be affiliated with the Archconfraternity at Westminster.
The Guild is primarily under the patronage of the Blessed Virgin Mary, as well as that of St Stephen (the Protomartyr, after whom the Guild was named), St. Thomas More, and St. Pius X.
The purpose of the Guild of St. Stephen is threefold:
Upon enrollment into the Guild, the server is presented with the Guild Medal, which is made of bronze and is worn around the neck, hanging from a red cord representing the blood of the martyrs. It is not permissible to change the colour of the cord as this is symbolic of the martyr patrons of the Guild.
The medal's meaning is twofold:
The letters "XP" are in the centre of the medal, being the first two letters of the name "Christ" in Greek.